Railway-vehicle coupling apparatus.



PATENTED MAR. 3, 1903.

A I G. B. ORTON.

RAILWAY VEHICLE OOUPLING- APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 23, 1902. no MODEL.

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, TH: NORRIS PETERS co., PHQTOLITNQ, wnumo'royu, u. c.

- wagon fitted with my invention.

UNITED "STATES PATENT OFFIcE. I

GUY BRYAN ORTON, OF PATRIOROF'IQ NEAR MANCHESTER, ENGLAND.

RAILWAY-VEHICLE COUPLING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 721,735, dated March 3,1903.

Application filed June 23, 1902.

ling Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to enable railway and like vehicles,and especially wagons, to be coupled and uncoupled without the necessityfor any one to go between the vehicles; and a further object is topermit of a railway-vehicle fitted with my-invention being coupled to avehicle not fitted with my invention, and thus allow of its gradualintroduction to the various rail-way systems, and to permit of myinvention being clearly understood I have hereunto appended a'sheet ofdrawings, in which Figure 1 illustrates a side elevation in part, andFig. 2 an inverted plan, of a railway- Fig. 3 is a front view of animportant detail.

To the underframe 1 of the wagon I apply brackets 2, and between suchbrackets I support a roller 3; also, to the underframe I ap-v ply afurther bracket 4, havingla plate 5, held adj ustably thereto by a bolt-6. Upon the plate 5 and roller 3 I support a U-shaped rod 7, the ends ofwhich turn up and engage trunnions or studs 8 on thecoupling-link 9, andthereby sustain the link in a position suitable for coupling to anadjoining wagon. In further and slotted brackets or bearings 10 I mounta further U-shaped rod or lifter 11,

and the bridge of such lifter lies immediately below the two arms of therod '7 In bearings 12 I put a cross-shaft 13, extending outside thewagon and at each end fitted with a weighted operating lever-handle 14.In further bearings 15 I mount a further cross-shaft 16, and on suchshaft is a lever 17 coupled by links 18 and adjustable collars 19,carrying studs, to the rod 7. vUnder the influence of weights 20 thelever and links hold the rod '7 and coupling-link 9 in the positionshown by full lines in Fig. 1.

Upon the shaft 13 I mount a lever-arm 21, with T-shaped extremity,and'the length of Serial No. 112,849. (No model.)

such arm is such that its extremity is capable of coming against thelever 17, and thereby holding the rod 7 and link 9 in the position shownby full lines in Fig. 1, or of coming below and raising the yoke 11, andtherefore of raising the rod 7and link 9 to the position shown by dottedlines in Fig. 1 ready for coupling.

With the hook of the adjoining wagon below the link when so raised it isthen lowered and the coupling thus effected without the need of goingbetween the wagons. To uncouple the wagons, the coupler-rod7 (andconsequently the link 9) is raised and allowed to retire under theinfluence of the weights 20.

To permit of the wagons coupling automatically, the nose of thedraw-hook 22 may be of the form shown by dotted lines, and to insure thelink 9 coming over the hook each wagon may have a curved (focus)plate-.23, against which the link strikes, this arrangement beingspecially useful when coupling the wagons on a curve. I

The usual draw-spring 24 may be arranged as shown by full lines ordotted lines, and the link 9 is sustained horizontally by small snugs 9lying against link 9.

What I claim is.

In coupling apparatus for railway-Wagons and the like, a coupling-linkwith lateral studs, a coupler-rod of U shape, and having upturned endsengaging the said studs, means forsustaining the said coupler-rod belowthe wagon, a cross-shaft having a lever-arm, and

links for coupling such armto the said coupler-rod, a weighted arm alsoon the said shaft,

